Stepsister
by emMelye
Summary: NEWCHAPTER 8! What would it have been like if Lady Van Tassel brought a daughter with her when she married into the Van Tassel household? What would Katrina's stepsister be like? Please R
1. The New Van Tassel's

Stepsister

Summary: What would it have been like if Lady Van Tassel had brought a daughter along when she married into the Van Tassel family? What would Katrina's stepsister be like? Read this if you want to know!

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Sleepy Hollow characters or Sleepy Hollow itself, just Amelia for now. I just love Sleepy Hollow!

Chapter 1: The New Van Tassel's

I followed my mother as we stepped into our new home. It was much nicer than the cave we'd been living in with my aunt for as long as I can remember. Here, there was a certain kind of warmth and safety in the air. My long blonde hair, much like my mother's but not up in a bun like hers, blew in the small breeze coming in from a window. I preferred keeping my hair down or only half up. My mother said that it made me look like I grew up in the woods, which in fact I had. She wanted to make us look proper so that we could forget our terrible past behind us. But I still insisted on keeping my hair the way I liked it.

We were in the home of the widower Baltus Van Tassel and his daughter Katrina. They were my new family. They were my new stepfather and stepsister. My mother had married him the day before, and we had packed all of our necessary things that night. Now I would have to become accustomed to a new house with a new family. I was just relieved that my mother was there with me. I knew she had some sort of revenge on her mind-she spoke of it the day before, not long before the wedding. She said that she would tell me soon, but that was not a good time. I couldn't wait to hear her plans. Whenever she plotted, there was usually something for me to do. Something that involved my favorite pastime.

Witchcraft.

"Miranda, look at our wonderful new home," my mother said to me. My mother, whose name is Mary, was the only person I would allow to call me by my full name, Miranda. Everyone else had to call me Andi, or suffer the consequences. I had gone from Miranda Archer, our real name, to Miranda Preston, our fake name, in less than a day. Now, I am Miranda Van Tassel, a name that I will always curse. My mother felt that Andi sounded too masculine for a girl. But I like it.

Except, I knew she was only lying about liking it here. She didn't really like this place. She only said that as a cover. Her mind was really set on revenge, and she would stop at nothing to gain what she had come for.

At that time, I was only ten. This Katrina girl, my new stepsister, was fifteen. After five years together, my mother began her plot. On the night of my fifteenth birthday, she began her revenge on the Van Garrett household. And first to go, was Van Garrett himself.


	2. My Biography

Chapter 2: My Autobiography

Well, it is probably best that I tell you a bit about myself before talking about what my mother did. This is a short story about myself. I promise it won't take long.

When I was very young, I was raised by my aunt and mother in the Western Woods, away from the town Sleepy Hollow. We were considered outcasts because of how we practiced witchcraft. My mother's family had been kicked out before I was born and her mother died soon after they were kicked out. So it has been just my aunt, my mother, and myself for a long time now. They taught me much in our cave home, but magic was my primary study. I learned spells, curses, potions, hexes. Any kind of magic and chances are I learned it.

My mother said that she got rid of my father soon after she knew that I would be healthy and survive. She told me to do this someday, too, to keep the Archer line going. But she told me that it was a strictly female line, so if I had any boys, they would have to be rid of. My mother said that she and my father tried three times before I was born. Two were boys, which she quickly "disposed of". She said that the baby before I was born was a girl, but she died soon after birth.

Then there is me. The one that survived. If the same things happen to me and I end up with boys, I will make sure that they have good homes. I won't kill any like I'm pretty sure my mother did. Although I am much like my mother, she is slightly colder and darker than I am.

Now to talk of more present times. Three weeks after my tenth birthday, my mother announced that she was engaged to Baltus Van Tassel. She had told me of her plan already-she had been working at it since I was almost nine years old. My mother shares everything with me. We have an extremely close relationship. Though I can't say that about her and my aunt...they don't get along very well. I'm not too fond of my aunt either, but she is alright.

Well, back to my story. It was the night of my fifteenth birthday, and my mother had brought me to the windmill where she planned to execute her plan. She held the Horseman's head as she began the spell. The spell that would begin her revenge on the household that had cost her and her family so much...


	3. Murder!

Chapter 3: Murder!

The next morning, a gunshot rang out throughout the town. It woke up most of Sleepy Hollow's residents, including myself.

"Murder!" a man's voice said from outside, "The Horseman's back! And he's killed again!"

Although we were still in the house, my mother and I could hear screams coming from other villagers. I ran into the kitchen where my mother already was. She smiled wickedly at me.

"I told you it would work," she said to me, "Now Van Garrett and his son are dead."

I smiled back at her. "And, the head?" I asked curiously.

"It's in a safe place for now. I know where it is for our next murder," she said. She was about to tell me where the head was hidden (I can read my mother's expression like a book), when Baltus and Katrina came running down.

"Hush now," my mother said to me, giving me one last sly smile before putting her serious face back on, "They're coming down."

Baltus ran down the stairs, followed by his daughter. He had a shocked look on his face. I could tell that he had heard the messenger (everyone could).

"The Hessian Horseman has returned," he said, a grave look on his face, "And he has already struck two victims. Van Garrett and the younger Van Garrett are now dead."

My mother did her best to look shocked. "Oh, the poor things!" my mother said.

I just stood there. Baltus and Katrina both still considered me a naïve, stupid little fifteen year old, though my intelligence was far more superior than that twit Katrina's was at nineteen. They both just ignored me and spoke with my mother.

Baltus looked uneasy. "Maybe we should leave the village."

This time, the look on my mother's face was really and truly a look of shock. "Oh no, we can't! Besides, I'm sure that someone will get rid of him soon," she said quickly. A move would prove disasterous for our plans. Moving from Sleepy Hollow would mean that we wouldn't be able to call upon the Horseman anymore.

I quickly tried to help my mother persuade Baltus. "My mother's right," I said, "Someone will probably get rid of him soon. I heard some of the other villagers talking about lookouts being stationed at night. I'm sure it will be fine," I reassured them.

Katrina and Baltus looked shocked, as if I'd never spoken before, let alone something like that. "Yes, I do suppose the two of you are right," Baltus said, "It will be fine."

My mother sighed a sigh of relief. "Well," she said to Baltus, "Why don't you and Katrina go check out the murder scene. Maybe there are some clues there as to why the Horseman is back." She was saying this to try and get them out of the house so that we could speak alone.

Katrina looked at my mother as if she was mad. "Me? Go to the murder scene?" she said, "I think not. I'll stay here with you and Andi. Maybe we could do some household chores to keep our minds off the murder."

My mother and I looked at each other. I sent her a look that said

_What a naïve idiot twit! _

My mother practically read my mind. She nodded at me and rolled her eyes. She looked back at her husband and stepdaughter. She tried to think of a way we could get out, just the two of us. I knew she had an idea when her face lit up.

"I just remembered! Miranda and I have to go out today...We have to...Go visit some people and...run some errands...We should be back sometime this afternoon. I'm sorry Katrina," she said. She didn't mean it, but she made it look like she did.

Katrina looked depressed. "That's alright. I'll just stay home today. I'll see you when you get back then!" she said as she walked back upstairs to get changed into her chores clothing.

Baltus looked at my mother. "I'll go to the murder scene. Being one of the head people in town, I feel that it's my job to be there," he said, "I shall see the two of you later." And with that he gave my mother a kiss and left.

Once we knew he was gone, my mother spit into a bucket. "Oh, how I loathe that man!" she said disgustedly. She hated having to play the part of his wife, but she knew it would be worth it in the end. "Now, fetch our horses. We're going for a little ride," she commanded me. I went for the horses and got them ready to ride. My mother came out after a short while and we mounted our horses. I quickly pulled my long hair back so that it wouldn't whip around my face. It was an extremely breezy day out that day.

And then we were off to run our "errands".


	4. Our Errands

Chapter 4: Our "Errands"

My mother and I rode off on our horses. Hers was a majestic, tall, light gray gelding named Daredevil (she named him after the Horseman's steed). Mine was a tall black mare named Winnie. These were the only horses that we rode since we couldn't trust most other horses in our journeys to the Western Woods. Other horses spooked too easily.

Our first stop was the murder scene. We wanted to see how well our work was done by the Horseman. We dismounted our horses far enough away that so that they wouldn't be heard by the men that were examining Van Garrett's body. We crept toward them to see our work and hid behind trees that were nearby. We snuck a glance at each other and smiled, seeing that the Hessian had done our work magnificently. We looked at where the Horseman had dislodged the head from the body. The wound was red with the man's blood and all different sorts of insects were swarming around the body. The head, of course, was gone, taken by the Headless Horseman. We watched them as they looked at the body and the wound. These men were for some reason beyond me very squeamish around the body. I enjoyed being there with my mother, seeing how all our hard work was finally paying off. The only part I could not handle was the smell, which reeked of dead things and blood.

Finally, as the coffin carriage came for the body, we left. My mother had given me a glance and whispered, "Let's go." We went back for our horses and started to go to our next stop.

We rode further into the Western Woods, back to the house where my mother, my aunt, and I had grown up. It wasn't really a house, actually, just a cave. But it was a homely cave, full of things for witchcraft and fond memories of mine.

When we got to the door, my mother knocked. We heard some movement inside.

"Who's there?" asked a familiar voice.

My mother sighed. "Aggie, let me in," she said. My aunt's name was Agnes.

The door suddenly flew open. I jumped back a bit, but my mother remained motionless in her spot, obviously unaffected by her sister's swift movements.

"Come in, come in," she said to us, "Mary, Andi, I haven't seen you in so long! What has been keeping you away?" We had never actually told her that my mother was married. She's just a twit, like Katrina. She thinks we keep going out.

And not coming back for a long time.

My mother looked at her sister and rolled her eyes. She didn't like her visits with Aunt Aggie, but she had to. It was the only way to find out information.

You see, my mother's good in most areas of witchcraft. I also am fairly good, but not as good as her. But there is one thing that neither of us can do, and that's telling the future.

Yes, sadly, the twit in our family has one of the more essential powers. The one that we needed. So we had to keep coming back here occasionally for her help.

Luckily for us, we came at a good time. Her veil was over her face. She only wore her veil when the Other was coming.

And the Other was the reason why we had come. My aunt was born possessed, and every week or so her possessed side would come out. The Other, as she has always called this side, had psychic powers. Many times we would go to her when the Other came just to find out about our future. We also used to be in charge of chaining her and making the potion for her, but that was only when it was very serious. The worst that the Other has ever done was almost chopping off my arm. If I hadn't moved away as quickly as I had, I would not have my left arm anymore. But that's the worst that's ever happened. She also never remembers what went on when the Other came. She just wakes up not remembering falling asleep. So she never remembers what is said or done, which usually turns out to be a good thing for us. She also had a ritual of stepping outside the cave afterwards. The fresh air seemed to calm her down a bit after an ordeal with the Other.

As we followed Aunt Aggie into the cave, my mother had me go with my aunt. We took turns when it came to talking with Aunt Aggie. Neither of us really liked our visits with her. This time it was my turn to get the information needed.

"Aunt Aggie," I said to her, "I will go with you when the Other comes. To help you and protect you. Just in case." I walked her into her transforming room. That is what we had always called that portion of the cave. It was set aside years ago for its sole purpose-to contain the Other in a room where no one could be harmed. It was fully equipped with chains, ingredients needed for her potions, and a padlocked door. This way, no one could get in either and risk endangering him or herself.

Aggie nodded. At least, I think she nodded. Sometimes, it is hard to tell what's going on underneath her veil. She turned to me.

"Alright," she said to me, "but be careful. I feel a sense that this time, when the Other comes, he will be very powerful. I will have to double my potion." She walked into her part of the cave, the transforming room. I followed her in. I closed the door behind me and heard a familiar noise-the padlock being locked. My mother was already prepared, just in case.

Aunt Aggie sat down in her usual spot. She did the same procedure she did every time the Other came. She put the chains around her wrists-tighter than usual, I noticed.

_Something big must be coming,_ I thought, _She seems to be going to a lot of trouble doing extra things to protect me from the Other. The information received today will probably be vital to our plans. _

I watched as she worked on the potion. She threw all of the usual ingredients in, but doubled everything.

Except the baby bat's head. That she did not double.

She tripled it.

Yes, she cut off three baby bats' heads. A bat's head holds restraint powers which is why it is included in the potion.

I was beginning to get a little worried. In all my years of coming to my aunt, I had never seen her use three bats heads. Almost always one, and on some occasions, two. But three?

Never.

I started shaking a bit. Then I remembered my mother. If she saw me in a state like I am now, I would have had a paddling. My mother is very disciplinary, and one thing that she always punishes me for is my lack of control over my emotions.

"Miranda," she always said to me, "You need to learn to control your emotions. We can't have the Archer line ruined by a sensitive person. One person who can't control herself in our line could completely throw it off. Work on it, dear."

I sat in the chair, working on containing the shaking. Once it had finally stopped, I sat completely still. By then, my aunt was hunched over a bit.

Then, I heard her say those fearful words.

"Hush," she said, "The Other comes."

I closed my eyes for a second. When I opened them, I was ready to face the Other, no matter how bad it was. I looked at my aunt, who was now practically lying on the table.

"Aunt Aggie?" I asked, "Are you still there?" I became nervous. This was my least favorite part of our visits. When the Other finally comes out.

It scares me half to death every time. By now, if that was actually true, I probably would've died fifty times at least.

So I sat in my chair and braced myself. I reassured myself that everything would be okay.

When suddenly, the Other came. My aunt lunged toward me, her eyes and tongue coming out of her head attached by snakes. Her skin began to shrivel up like it always does and her hair turned whiter than it already was.

I jumped a bit, as always, and then sat straight up. I had to listen intently to what my aunt said. One missed piece of information could cost me my head-literally.

The snakes pulled themselves in. My aunt now had no eyes, just sockets where they used to be. She was pulling at her chains, the hardest I'd ever seen her before. Some of the screws holding the shackles to the wall came loose. I almost screamed for my mother to come in, but then decided it was probably best not to. But I did scoot back about a foot, just in case. I waited for her to begin speaking.

She looked at me. "Soon," she said, her voice sounding eerie and bizarre, "a man will come from the south, New York City. He is a constable that goes by the name Ichabod Crane. There will be only two more successful killings before he comes. He will come to inspect these murderers in two days."

I thought about what she said. I assumed she was finished, so I started getting up to leave. That is, until she said one last thing.

"Beware the constable," she said, "he is the one who could ruin all your plans."

And with that she collapsed onto the table.

I slowly made my way out of the room. I knocked on the padlocked door three times, our secret knock telling that the Other was gone. I heard a noise from outside as my mother unlocked the door. The door opened quickly as my mother faced me.

"So," she said cautiously, "Any good news?"

I looked at her for a minute then looked down. "No, not really," I told her.

She gave me a worried look. "Why? What did Aggie say?"

I thought of how to say it. Finally I just decided on telling her straight out.

"Mother," I said to her, "Aunt Aggie said that there is a constable coming soon. In two days, to be exact. From somewhere south of here called New York City. She warned me that he is the one that could ruin our plot," I said. She looked even more worried now. I wanted to give her some good news. I couldn't think of any at first, but then I remembered something she said.

"But she did say that two more people will be successfully killed before he comes."

A satisfied look appeared on her face. I could tell she was still worried, but this did seem to cheer her up a little. She looked away from me and glanced at my aunt's possessions. I could tell she was trying to keep her mind off something by looking around and not meeting my gaze. And I knew what it was.

She was worried that this constable would be a threat. A very big one. I didn't know what this New York City was, but she seemed to know. She seemed to know that it meant something bad was going to happen when this man arrived.

This man named Ichabod Crane.

"At least there's some good news," she said to me, "We will just have to keep a close eye on this constable when he comes. If he seems like too much of a threat, we will just have to get rid of him." She smiled slyly, trying to mask her fears, "With the Horseman's help, of course." She finally met my gaze again, something that had taken her five minutes.

"I wonder," she said mysteriously, "who our next two victims will be."


	5. The Horseman's Skull

Chapter 5: The Skull's Location

The next two days went by very quickly. Of course, we discovered our victims in that time. But Aunt Aggie had been wrong. Only one of our victims was killed before Constable Crane got here. The other had been the night of his arrival. I should probably tell you about those days in between, though, so that you have an understanding of what happened.

On our way back home that night from visiting Aggie, we made a quick stop at the Tree of the Dead. It was just so that my mother could tell me where the Horseman's skull was. We arrived there just before dusk.

My mother dismounted her horse first. I loved the grace she had in everything. Why couldn't I have inherited some of her qualities instead of what I am guessing to be my father's?

She looked at me as I followed her action in dismounting. She looked at the Tree again.

"Miranda," she said to me, "I need to tell you where the Horseman's skull is. Just in case you need it if something were to happen to me." She glanced around to make sure no one was watching. Of course, there was no one. There was no single person brave enough to venture into the Western Woods, especially out this far in the forest. We were the only two, other than Aunt Aggie of course. I looked at her, waiting for her to tell me where the head was.

"Well?" I asked after a brief moment of silence from both of us.

She gave me one of her looks. My mother had many looks: looks for making you feel guilty, looks for seduction, and many more. But this one was the one that said "Do you want extra chores for a month, Andi?" That was the look that usually was a signal for me to be quiet. So I didn't say anything else.

She started to walk around the perimeter of the Tree, touching it the whole time. "You know," she said to me finally, "I was only seven when I witnessed the Horseman's death."

I tried to look shocked, but it didn't work. I had heard this story many times before, so this came as no shock to me. "Yes, mother, I know," I said, putting the acting aside, "You've told this story to me before. Many times."

My mother gave me that look. Again. "Well, it was then that I sold my soul to Satan to raise the Horseman."

"To avenge those who kicked you out. I know mother, I know," I said. Although, I loved hearing that story. My mother and I were very close to one another.

"Fine," my mother said to me, "If you don't want to hear the story, then I won't tell it." She stopped her circumnavigation of the tree in front of it. She stared at it for a while and turned to me.

"Andi," she said to me, "I probably won't be around much longer. I am getting older. But so are you. And just in case I may die before my vengeance is through, I want you to know where the skull is. Just in case." She looked at me then. She double checked to make sure no one was around. When she was sure that no one was watching, she motioned for me to come closer. I walked to her and waited.

"Remember how I told you about where my mother, father, Aunt Aggie and I used to live?" she began whispering, "I showed you the place once."

I tried to recall such a place. Then it came to me. "Yes," I said in reply, "All that's left is a hearth, some stones, and some timber. What does that have to do with this?"

"I'll show you," was all she said before remounting her horse and cantering off.

I quickly remounted my horse too and followed as fast as I could. I lost her for a few moments, but then I found her again, standing on the ground inside the ruins of her old home, her horse's reins in her hand. She saw that I was finally there and looked out for anyone. This was right outside the Woods, so there was more of a chance of someone watching them. She saw that no one was there and crept toward the hearth. Inside were a few cobwebs, many spiders, some dead grass, and some ashes from when the Van Tassels lived there after my mother. She looked at me again.

"In this hearth," she whispered, "The Hessian's skull is buried. Dig only a foot or two to find it." She walked to her horse and pulled a shovel out of a bag she had brought. She quickly walked back to me and gave me the shovel. "I only keep it here for long periods of time. Otherwise, I keep it under a loose floorboard in Baltus's and my room."

I looked at the shovel in my hand. I was confused. Why did she hand this to me? I lifted my head to look back at her, which had the most puzzled look on my face ever.

She rolled her eyes at me. "Honestly, Miranda," she said to me, "There are some times when I think you're as stupid as that idiot, Katrina. I want you to dig up the skull so that I know you can do it."

"Oh," I said. I blushed with embarrassment. Between the two of us, comparing each other to Katrina Van Tassel was like comparing each other to a log. I quickly took the shovel and began to dig. I dug for a short while before hitting something white, the skull. I pulled it out and showed it to my mother. She looked pleased.

"Very good, Andi," she said to me proudly, "Now you know where the skull is just in case something happens to me." She got back on top of her horse again.

I looked at her dumbly. "I don't have to bury it, do I?"

My mother started laughing. "No, of course not. Remember what Aggie said? We have some work that has to be done." She smiled at me again and rode off, back to our house.

I got back up on my horse too after fixing up the area around the hole I had dug up the skull from. I followed my mother as we headed back home, where I encountered the worst noise I've ever heard when I walked through the door.


	6. Our Unwelcome Home Party

Chapter 6: Our Unwelcome Home Party

"ANDI!" I heard as I opened the door. My mother followed me in. We heard some quick footsteps and then saw Katrina walk into the kitchen where we were now located. She seemed to be hiding something behind her back.

"Miranda!" she screamed to me again. I began to clench my fists. No one and I mean no one, calls me by my full name other than mother. I decided that I probably shouldn't hit her since Baltus was in the room.

I looked at her with a very bored look on my face. "What is it Katrina?" I said dully. I could tell that whatever it was, she was furious, and I had a good idea what was bothering her.

She glared at me harder. "Look what I found in my room!" It was then that everyone found out what she had behind her back. She pulled her hand out in front of her and showed all of us.

A bat head. Not just any bat head, though. One that I put in her room.

I tried my hardest not to laugh.

"Whatever are you talking about, Katrina?" I asked politely.

"You put this mouse's head in my room to scare me and my friends!" she said. It wasn't until then that I noticed two girls Katrina's age on the stairs, Elizabeth and Polly. They were our neighbors and Katrina's closest friends. Polly looked like she'd been crying. I of course have no friends other than my mother. Katrina tells rotten stories about me so that everyone in town thinks that I'm a freak.

"For your information," I said sarcastically, "It's a bat's head, not a mouse's. Of course, I wouldn't expect you to know this."

I knew as I was saying this that I went too far. Well, at least for her. I could've gone thousands of miles further than that, but with both Katrina and Baltus in the room, I was doomed. I quickly glanced at mother, who had turned away to hide her smile.

Katrina was fuming. She screamed and looked to her father. "There will be some punishment issued, won't there father?" she asked Baltus impatiently.

Baltus was frowning. "Miranda," he said to me furiously. I cringed since nobody but my mother calls me by my full name if they want to live to tell the tale.

"Miranda," he said again, more furious than before, "What have we told you about leaving things like, like," he pointed to the bat head disgustedly, "_that _out of the house? This is gone too far. You've left something like this in Katrina's room five times now. I believe that now some punishment should be issued." He turned to his wife. "Mary," he said to her, "She's your daughter, so I think you should be the one to punish her, not me."

My mother nodded her head. "Of course Baltus," she said. She turned to me and winked, not letting the Van Tassels see this. "Come along, Miranda," she said, leading me out to the backyard. It wasn't until we got back there and saw that no one was around that we started laughing. We just couldn't stop!

"Did you…did you…" I tried to say, fighting through the laughter, "Did you see the look on that ninny's face! And her friends!"

My mother was laughing twice as hard as I was. "Yes!" she said, "And the look on Baltus's face when Katrina lifted that head up!" She continued to laugh. "I thought he was going to faint right then and there!"

We continued to laugh together for a few more minutes until my mother embraced me in a hug. "I couldn't have had a better daughter than you, Andi," she said to me proudly. I pulled back from her and smiled. She looked around quickly. "Come along," she said, the moment lost, "I'm sure Baltus thinks I'm murdering you out here. He may come to investigate soon." And with that we began our walk back up front.

"Remember, Andi," my mother said, "Look terrified and hurt." She led me briskly up to the front door.

As we approached our house, the Widow Winship began walking to us. I usually try to avoid contact with other people in town so that they don't talk to me and find out that I really am a freak, so I kept walking. Mother had slowed down, watching the widow approach us. When I thought she was going to actually speak to us, she suddenly turned and walked into our house. My mother and I looked at each other and shrugged. We weren't expecting company today, just Katrina's friends.

As the Widow was about to knock on our door, my mother hurried ahead and got the door for her. "Hello, Emily," she said to her, "What brings you here?"

Emily looked nervous. She couldn't make eye contact with mother. "I must speak to you and your husband about something," she said quietly.

My mother's eyes widened. She quickly put on her normal face so as not to scare the widow. "Really?" she asked, "Alright, come in then please." My mother walked in, followed by the widow, and then finally me. Emily kept her gaze on me as we walked along. She finally turned to my mother.

"I need to speak to the two of you," she said, glancing at me, "_alone._"

My mother caught what she meant and gestured for me to get out. "I'm sorry, Emily," she said, "I didn't realize she was following us." She looked at me and winked, a signal meaning for me to go to my listening spot. I had a feeling that the widow Emily Winship would be the next to go.

I nodded. "My apologies," I said, leaving the room. Once I had closed the door, I walked upstairs to my room. I could hear my mother calling for Baltus and his footsteps hurrying across the wooden floorboards. I quickly moved my bed out of the way and lifted a few of the floorboards that were loose. I was just small enough to fit down in the crevice and crawl silently to almost wherever I wanted in the house without being noticed.

I began my crawling to get above the kitchen. I heard girly giggles coming from Katrina's room and heard some nasty things said about me. I scowled. Oh well, I thought, I'll just have to get her back later.

I hurried along, hoping that I hadn't missed much. At the rate Baltus moved, I would probably beat him there. I finally heard chatter below me, my mother and the widow talking. I groaned, for Baltus still had not yet arrived. My mother and Emily spoke for a short while before Baltus finally arrived. My mother quickly looked up at exactly where I was and smiled. She looked back at our company.

Baltus spoke first. "What seems to be the matter, Emily? My wife tells me you were worried earlier," he said, his eyes shifting around the room.

Emily stood up slowly and paced around the room a bit. This was most unlike her, for she usually is like a chattering sparrow when it comes to chit-chat. After a long wait, she finally spoke up.

"Please don't tell anyone," she said to them, "I came to you because other than the Notary and the Magistrate, you are the only people I can trust."

Baltus frowned. "Is something wrong?" he asked, worried about one of his townspeople.

Emily shook her head. "No," she said. Then she thought for a minute. "Well, I guess, yes, there is something wrong." She turned to look out the window.

I could tell my mother was getting impatient. "Well? What's wrong, Emily?" she asked politely but firmly.

Just then a spider crawled across the parts of my legs that my dress wasn't covering at the moment. I let out a little yelp then covered my mouth with my hands.

Baltus and Emily looked up. "What was that?" Baltus asked.

My mother simply rolled her eyes. "Oh, it was probably just a mouse," she said, "They are very common this time of year." This was a lie, but of course Baltus and Emily fell for it. She looked back at the widow. "Well, what were you going to say before we were so _rudely_ interrupted by that _mouse_?" She just had to put emphasis on rudely and mouse, all the while looking up at where I was. I cringed.

Emily nodded. "Yes, well, you see…" she started, "I went to the Notary with Peter Van Garrett before he was…" she couldn't say it, "murdered. You see, I'm pregnant. With his child."

My mother let out a small gasp then an even smaller smile. I let out the biggest smile I could, for it seemed that we had found our next victim.

Baltus looked horrified. "Oh my!" he said, "But why did you go to the Notary?"

Emily began weeping. "Because we had the will changed," she said cautiously, "I needed to tell you since you were a part of it. I'm so sorry." Now she was really sobbing.

"It's alright Emily," my mother said to comfort her, "Thank you for telling us." She ushered her towards the door.

Emily wiped her tears. I could tell that this conversation was over, so I got out of my hiding place and began walking briskly down the hall to the stairs. I could hear them saying their farewells to each other when I heard the front door close. I knew that now was the time to come out. I walked down the stairs. When my mother spotted me, she semi-smiled. "Andi," she said, "Won't you come here for a minute? I need to finish your punishment. Please follow me into the kitchen." She began walking into the kitchen while Baltus smiled smugly, probably enjoying the fact that I was getting punished and not his little angel. I opened the door to the kitchen and shut it behind me.

My mother paced around quickly. "You heard what the widow said, didn't you?" she whispered to me.

I grinned. "Yes," I answered, "Is she next?"

My mother smiled. "You must have read my mind," she said happily. She began walking out the door to fetch the horses for us to leave when she suddenly turned around. I had been following her closely, so I bumped into her when she stopped.

"Miranda," she said to me nicely, "The next time a 'mouse' makes a noise during a secret conversation, I'm not covering for it."

My head drooped. "Yes, mother, I'm sorry," I replied quietly.

"Good," she said, beginning her walk towards our stables again, "Let's go!"

And with that we prepared our horses for our journey to the old hearth to get the Horseman's skull.


	7. Some Extra Victims

Chapter 7: Some Extra Victims

After we finished preparing our horses, we mounted and began a swift move toward the Western Woods. Of course, we had made sure that no one was looking first. I mean, it's probably not right for the wife of the richest man in town and her daughter to be riding into forbidden territory, isn't it?

Anyway, once we entered the woods, we raced toward the hearth of the original Van Tassel's old home, which really should have been my home if it had not been for those lying pigs.

Okay, I'm getting off track now. Well, anyway, we had almost reached the hearth when I heard a noise coming from behind me. I halted my horse and looked back, trying to find the source of it. My mother was ahead of me, but she stopped after I had. She looked back at me and frowned. "Miranda," she said, "Is something the matter?"

I kept staring back there. "I thought I heard something," I replied, "It came from behind that tree."

Mother sighed and dismounted her horse. She walked over to me and grabbed my shoulders firmly. She turned me so that I was facing her. "Miranda," she said, "It was just a small animal. No one is brave enough to venture into the Woods other than us. Not even the bravest of men. Now come along, you're wasting time." She walked briskly to her horse and remounted. "And please try and keep up," she said, her horse walking toward our destination, "I know you're horse is slow, but she can't possibly be that slow." She began a canter off further into the woods.

I sighed. "Alright," I shouted out to her. I ran up to Winnie and remounted her like my mother had with Daredevil. I quickly galloped off after her.

After what seemed like forever, we finally reached the ruins. We quickly dismounted and grabbed our shovels to begin digging. We started, and after around a half of an hour, my mother finally lifted the skull out of its resting place.

"There," she said, brushing off the excess dirt, "We've got it! Now let's head back to the windmill before we miss old Baltus's party."

I groaned at the thought of another party. This was the fifth one this month, and we were only two weeks into the month! It kept me up late and just made for another outlet for Katrina and her friends make me look like a freak. Which I am, but I don't want others knowing it.

It was just then that I heard a scream. I whipped around to see Polly and Elizabeth standing in our midst, Polly with her hand over her mouth. Obviously, she was the one that had screamed, because Elizabeth looked at her crossly when I turned around.

"Oh my God!" Polly shouted, knowing that they had been caught anyway, "You two are freaks! Just like Katrina said! What are you doing with the Horseman's skull?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "They're going to have a tea party with it," she said sarcastically, "What do you think? They're calling for the Horseman with it. And they're going to have him murder someone!"

Polly's eyes widened. Clearly she had not thought of this. "Oh," she said, realizing what was going on.

Elizabeth sighed. "Honestly Polly, sometimes I think you're as bad as Delilah was!"

Delilah was what you would probably call the town's insane person. She never knew where she was, thought that she was Alexander the Great, and had even killed someone to "conquer them and claim their land for Macedonia" as she said. She had to be shot before she did anything else, she was getting to be that bad.

Polly pouted. "I am NOT like Delilah!" she whined.

Elizabeth groaned. "Yes you are!" she said, "Soon you'll be stabbing people just like she did so that you can 'claim their land', just like she did!"

Now Polly was mad. "Am not!"

"Are too!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

My mother groaned. "Will you two just shut your very large mouths!" she yelled at them, "You're giving me a headache, and that's nearly impossible to do."

Polly and Elizabeth were immediately quiet. They stood in silence, first looking at each other, then at me, then finally at my mother.

"So," Polly said slowly and very quietly, "Are you going to have the Horseman behead us like the Van Garrett's?"

Mother started laughing. I saw her slowly reach for something in one of her saddle bags, but I couldn't see what it was at first. She got it out and slowly started approaching them.

The two girls looked relieved. "That's good," Polly said, sighing heavily.

My mother drew nearer to the two of them, something still behind her back.

Elizabeth began her negotiations. "Yes, that's very good," she said to us, eyeing me uneasily, "How about we promise not to tell anyone about this and we just leave the whole thing alone." She looked back at my mother, who was now right in front of them. "Does that sound good to you two?" she asked.

My mother laughed some more. "Unfortunately for you two," she said, "You've seen too much. But, I've taken into consideration your negotiations and I have decided not to let the Horseman behead you."

Polly smiled. "Good, so we can put this whole thing behind us, right?" she asked.

My mother stopped laughing. "I'm afraid not, Miss Lockington," she said in a mock sympathetic voice, "You see, I said that I wouldn't let the Horseman behead you. I never said _I _wouldn't behead you!" And with that she swiftly pulled the axe out from behind her back and sliced Polly's head off.

Elizabeth's eyes widened and she screamed. "Nooooooo!" she yelled just as mother brought the axe to her neck. Blood flew everywhere. It soaked the trees, the dead leaves below our feet, and even our shoes a little. Leaves that had been brown before were now crimson with their blood. Polly's face still held its mild look of shock, while Elizabeth's held that look of terror she had when she realized she was to be next. My mother smiled at me and held the axe over her shoulder. "I knew that would become useful at some point in time!" she exclaimed, overall pleased with herself.

I laughed, but then stopped. I put a fake sympathetic face on and frowned at Elizabeth's body. "Pity," I said, "I was becoming a bit attached to her. She was much more advanced than Polly."

My mother rolled her eyes at me and walked back to her stallion. "Stop playing games," she said to me, though I could hear a hint of amusement in her voice, "We have a job to be done."


	8. Beheading the Widow

Chapter 8: Beheading the Widow

After what seemed like forever, we finally reached the ancient windmill. This was the same windmill we had used for all of our beheadings and the one we will always use for them. Our horses strode up to the side of the giant contraption and we dismounted. Tying them to the railing on the side, my mother and I carefully walked into the building. My mother began setting up for the incantation, but I was too busy walking through open bags of old flour barefoot. I loved the strange feeling of rotten flour between my toes.

"Miranda!" she shouted to me. I looked up at her, blushing. "What are you doing?"

"I…uh…I was…" I couldn't think of what to say, "I was playing in the flour?"

She sighed. "Miranda, you're not five anymore," she said. She looked like she was thinking. "Fine, go ahead, do what ever you'd like. I'll work on raising the Horseman. But on one condition."

I looked back up at her, puzzled. "What?"

"You get to go into town after I raise him. You know, to make sure the job gets done."

I smiled. "Okay!" I replied, accepting my usual job. I went back to stomping around in the flour. The bottom of my dress was beginning to cloud up from the flour. I looked back at my shoes, which were still lying on the ground next to one of the bags. I examined them more closely, noticing a spot of something wet and dark crimson on them.

"Dammit," I moaned. I turned back to mother. "I've got Elizabeth blood on my shoes."

She sighed. "Well, since they think you are so fond of mice," she said, coming up with an excuse for me, "Just say that you were walking around in a field and you stepped on one."

I shrugged. "Alright," I said, finding that this was a suitable lie. I heard my mother begin her chanting, but I didn't really pay attention. I was too busy looking at a marking I thought I saw underneath the flour bags. I was just about to move it when I heard my name being called.

"Miranda!" my mother shouted to me, "Miranda! Andi! Have you lost your hearing?" She sighed and then moaned, obviously annoyed with me. Her sigh drew me out of my dreamland, but I didn't have a chance to see what was on the ground. I looked at her and smiled sweetly. "Yes, mother? What is it?"

"You have a job to be done. The Horseman comes," she said, sending me out of the windmill. I could still hear her chanting as I walked out.

It was a long, treacherous walk to the town. Why I didn't grab my horse, I don't know. Probably because I was too caught up in the moment. Anyway, I had to walk all the way to where the widow was just to make sure that the Horseman did his job and did it properly. I could hear him galloping through the woods, an eerie sound that sent chills down my spine. I wondered if the townspeople could hear him. Surely they couldn't, otherwise they would've run away.

As I walked, I began thinking of the constable that was to come tomorrow night. I thought about if he'd be smart enough to figure us out. I highly doubted it. I mean, if our smartest officials still believed that the Horseman was raising himself, what could a man from New York City figure out?

I was so busy contemplating what would happen once he got there that I didn't realize I was in town until I bumped into a building.

"Owww!" I scream-whispered, rubbing my now sore forehead. "Cursed building!" I said to it, in a bit too much pain to say anything worse.

I was so absorbed on the pain in my forehead that I was lucky that I heard a scream. I looked up, my head still throbbing, and grinned. I quickly ran towards the direction I heard the scream come from.

Suddenly, I was in an open field. _This cannot be right, _I thought to myself. Surely the Horseman and Emily weren't here. I mean, he wouldn't behead her in open ground, would he?

My question was answered when I saw Emily running towards me. I saw that the Horseman followed not far behind her. She just kept screaming and screaming, it made my head hurt inside and out.

"HELP!" she screamed, "THE HORSEMAN! HE'S AFTER ME! HELP!" Unfortunately, it was then that I realized I had done something very wrong. I remembered one of mother's rules.

"When checking to make sure the job has been done," she had said, "Make sure you aren't seen by the victim. You never know when they may shout out your name, giving you away."

I slapped myself in the forehead for forgetting this. Of course, this only made it hurt worse. "Ouch!" I shouted a bit too loud. This made the Widow look at me. I almost slapped myself again, but luckily I remembered this time, causing much less pain on my part.

"ANDI!" she shouted, "ANDI! PLEASE HELP ME!" She just kept running and running. I stood there and tried out one of my mother's smirks. I don't think it worked all that well, because I felt my face feel all scrunched up. I probably looked like I had just eaten something extremely sour. I sighed and just did one of my own smirks. I was just glad that the Horseman was finally catching up to the Widow.

After what seemed like forever of her running in circles and shouting my name, the Horseman finally pulled up next to her. I think he had been trying to wear her out and play games with her for torture purposes. She had slowed down a lot, and Daredevil, being dead, did not loose any strength or stamina. I sat in the field, picking at the grass as I watched.

The Horseman came right up next to her, drawing his sword. She saw him do this and screamed, using her last spurt of energy to sprint a few yards closer to me. However, once she used this, she just couldn't run any longer. She stopped, a grim look on her face as she faced me. With one quick slice he cut off her head, sending blood and the head flying. Her body fell flat to the ground quickly, backside up. Unfortunately for me, the head landed not too far in front of me, more blood getting on my shoes and Emily's dead, grim face staring right back at me. I wasn't quite sure what to do with it, so I kind of kicked it away, unfortunately getting even more blood on my shoes. I looked up just in time to see the Horseman flip her over onto her back. He slowly lifted his sword before plunging it into her stomach. It took me a second to remember why he was doing this, but then I remembered the baby. I cringed a bit, knowing what he was doing, especially as he pulled out his sword, the bottom portion smeared with dark crimson blood. I stood watching as he swiftly came over to reclaim the head, stashing it away into his head bag.

As he rode off, I heard some villagers coming. _Sure, come once she's dead, _I thought to myself, rolling my eyes. I couldn't believe they hadn't heard us, but I guess we were pretty far away for them to hear. I realized that I had to get away from the scene of the crime, especially with Emily's blood all over my shoes. I ran as quickly as I could back to the windmill, all the while hearing screams and gasps coming from the field. I smirked, but I concentrated too hard on trying to smirk like my mother that I tripped over a tree branch. This time, I scraped up both of my knees, ruined my ugly yellow dress (which of course I didn't mind), and hit my head again. My forehead was probably the size of a watermelon, but I wouldn't know until I looked at it in a mirror.

I finally reached the field in which the windmill was located, running in it. I saw my mother was now just sitting there, staring at the fire and playing with the skull, waiting for me to come back. When she heard me come in, she smiled and turned to see me. However, once she saw me, her smile quickly disappeared.

"What the hell happened to you?" she asked, not in the way I was hoping she would. "You look as though you cut open your skin and put an apple under there." She surveyed me some more. "And your knees, your dress, your shoes…Miranda, what did you do?"

I blushed and pointed to my forehead. "I ran into a building in town," I said timidly.

Her jaw dropped and her eyes widened. "You ran into a what?" she asked, dumbfounded.

"A building," I said again, my voice becoming all squeaky. I looked at my dress and then at my knees. "And then I tripped in the woods. I tripped over a tree root."

She put her hand to her forehead, obviously frustrated with me. "Miranda," she said with her eyes closed, "Try and work on being less clumsy please."

I dropped my head. "Yes ma'am. I'm sorry," I said apologetically.

She opened her eyes and took her hand away. "It's alright," she sighed, taking another look at me, "Just as long as the Horseman got his job done." She looked at me hopefully.

I tried yet again to smirk like her. "Yes, he did," I said excitedly.

My mother jumped back in fear. "Miranda," she said to me with a look of terror on her face, "Don't make that face ever again!"

I frowned. "I'm sorry. I won't."

She sighed again, this one much deeper than the last. "Well, as long as he did his job, it's alright," she said. The look on her face said, _What am I going to do with her? _But I didn't mind. I was used to that.

She looked around and started packing up. "We had better get going," she said, "Before Baltus gets suspicious of where we are."

I nodded quickly and bent down to begin helping her. As we were crouched side by side, she suddenly stood up where she was. She looked me over again.

"Miranda?"

"Yes?"

"If anyone asks," she said, "You had a run in with a bear."

I looked at her, unsure of what to say. "A b-bear?" I stuttered.

"Yes," she said, "That way you can gain some sympathy from people."

I shrugged. "Alright," I said, glad that some people may be sympathetic towards me. We finished packing and went back outside. It was much cooler than it had been, but that's how it always was after the Horseman would strike. We quickly mounted our horses and rode back home.


End file.
